I'm Not Gonna Lose You
by Harlequin Law
Summary: "Have I told you lately that you think too much, Rukia?" Rukia knows this, but it's hard not to when so much is at stake. Sometimes Ichigo says all the right things without even trying. One-shot
**Disclaimer** : All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

* * *

 **~Rukia's Dream~**

 _I found myself dreaming,_  
 _In silver and gold._  
 _Like a scene from a movie,_  
 _That every broken heart knows._

 _We were walking on moonlight,_  
 _And you pulled me close._  
 _Split second and you disappeared,_  
 _And then I was all alone._

 **~End Dream~**

 _I woke up in tears,_  
 _With you by my side._  
 _A breath of relief,_  
 _And I realized,_  
 _No, we're not promised tomorrow._

Rukia awoke in a cold sweat, breathing heavy, before she looked out of the closet at the man laying in the bed across the small room. The young shinigami had been struggling with her conflicted feelings regarding the substitute shinigami who was sleeping soundly as though all was right with the world. She knew that whatever her feelings were, they were deep. So much had happened since they had met and Ichigo had become so strong...but Rukia still felt a pang of fear every time Ichigo took off for a fight, that he might not make it back. That or she would get a notice to return to the Soul Society and they would never see each other again. The thought had plagued her to the point she almost had a panic attack every time her soul pager went off. She truly felt that making a decision on her feelings would help to put her at ease again...instead of this constant state of anxiety.

Slowly, Rukia rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she climbed down from her bed and padded over to where Ichigo slept. With the weather being warm out, Ichigo had settled on just wearing shorts to bed...the streetlight from outside casting a glow along Ichigo's chest down to where his lower half disappeared beneath the sheets. Rukia's eyes slowly traveled across the plains of his chest to see one hand resting on his stomach while the other was tucked under his head. As she stood over Ichigo in a state of half awareness, she noticed that she had subconsciously brushed the hair from Ichigo's face and was lightly running her fingers through it, while scraping his scalp with her blunt fingernails.

Her chest felt warm and heavy as she watched Ichigo's face relax as a sigh escaped his now parted lips. Rukia stilled her ministrations as Ichigo shifted in his sleep, her eyes frozen to where Ichigo's hand laid on his stomach. She felt warm fingers wrap around the wrist whose fingers were currently buried within messy orange hair.

"Hmmm, Rukia? Is something wrong?", clouded eyes opened as Rukia realized she had been caught spacing out...with her hand in his hair.

"Of course not...why would you think something was wrong?!", came the quick reply from a slightly shocked Rukia.

"You seemed kinda far away for a minute...like you needed grounded or something", Ichigo replied quietly, a deeper rumble seeping through due to sleep.

A blush blossomed across Rukia's face. She hadn't realized that Ichigo could read her that well. A small squeak erupted from Rukia as she felt herself being pulled into bed with Ichigo, "W-what are you doing, Ichigo?" She could feel her entire body heating up due to embarrassment.

With a slight smirk on his face Ichigo replied, "My sisters used to come climb in bed with me sometimes when they were upset and I used to do the same with my parents too. Having another warm body close by sometimes helps you to relax."

"That's different, Ichigo. They are your family", Rukia huffed.

Ichigo sighed, "Have I told you lately that you think to much, Rukia?"

Ichigo turned to face Rukia as she settled in next to him. As she watched his face relax as he drifted back to sleep, she realized that her heart had already made a decision...it was her mind that was trying to fight things. Rukia laid next to Ichigo for a bit longer before his body heat began to seep into her and make her feel tired again. As she took a deep breath, Rukia recognized Ichigo's unique scent and then she placed her hand on Ichigo's head before running her fingers through his hair a few times as she drifted off.

 _So I'm gonna love you, like I'm gonna lose you._  
 _And I'm gonna hold you, like I'm saying goodbye._  
 _Wherever we're standing,_  
 _I won't take you for granted,_  
 _'Cause we'll never know when, when we'll run out of time._

* * *

Ichigo woke the next morning, his arms wrapped tightly around Rukia as she snuggled into his chest. The surprise at their situation was short as the events from the middle of the night filtered into his brain. Another smirk appeared on his face as he imagined Rukia's reaction should they still be in this position when she woke. He knew that she had been overly stressed lately, but he couldn't quite figure out what the cause was. After Rukia's actions last night, Ichigo had a strange feeling that it revolved around him somehow.

 _In the blink of an eye,_  
 _Just a whisper of smoke,_  
 _You could lose everything,_  
 _The truth is you never know._

At a moment's notice, their lives could be turned upside down once again and the thought of things changing was...unpleasant. Ichigo knew that he cared for Rukia, but he was afraid of messing things up by saying anything to her. They were two completely different people, from differing worlds who shared one life changing moment that affected both of them in varying ways. Even now, they were still discovering the rippling effects of their actions on the people around them.

Ichigo was pulled from his musings by the woman stirring in his arms. He inhaled deeply and let his eyes close again as he waited for Rukia to realize their current position, subconsciously squeezing Rukia a bit in the process.

* * *

Consciousness began to tug at Rukia, but the warmth that she was wrapped in urged her to return to sleep. Being barely aware, Rukia found herself burying her nose into soft skin, inhaling deep and then releasing the breath through her mouth. The body shivered and she registered a sharp intake of air in the area above her head. Her hands ran down the chest they had been pressed against before wrapping around a trim waist.

* * *

Ichigo was about to come undone! He didn't know what to do! He hoped that Rukia was aware of what she was doing, but he feared making any move in case she didn't. She apparently had no clue as to her abilities to seduce the opposite sex. As much as Ichigo wanted to stay in this position all day, he knew there were too many people in his house to allow him to stay there.

After a minute, he decided that the sooner he did something, the sooner the fallout would be over. He leaned back just enough to see Rukia's face, "Rukia?". She looked up at him with half-lidded eyes and his look softened as he took in her features. Ichigo could tell she wasn't quite with it yet, especially when he felt her hand caress the side of his face before pulling him down into a kiss. Momentarily stunned, Ichigo felt her lips on his...then tilted his head for better access before returning the kiss. He positioned his arm behind her back and cradled her head to help position her better underneath him as he felt her dainty hands weave their way into his hair.

 _So I'll kiss you longer baby,_  
 _Any chance that I get._  
 _I'll make the most of the minutes,_  
 _And love with no regrets._

Minutes passed as the two explored each others mouths. Pulling away, Ichigo rested his forehead against Rukia's. Both worked to calm their racing hearts before they opened their eyes to look at each other. Both had a light blush on their face, which incited giggles from Rukia and a chuckle from Ichigo and soon turned into full blown laughter. After running its course, all that remained were smiles on their faces. They both knew that things wouldn't be the same after this, but they would make sure they had the time to explore this to the fullest.

 _Let's take our time to say what we want,_  
 _Here's what we got before it's all gone,_  
 _'Cause no, we're not promised tomorrow._

 _So I'm gonna love you, like I'm gonna lose you._  
 _I'm gonna hold you, like I'm saying goodbye._  
 _Wherever we're standing,_  
 _I won't take you for granted,_  
 _'Cause we'll never know when, when we'll run out of time._

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Song is _**Like I'm Gonna Lose You by Meghan Trainor.**_

 **ORIGINAL POSTING DATE:** March 1, 2016

 **WORDS:** 1,472


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